NORTH LINCOLNSHIRE, England — Lincolnshire based Axholme Brewing Company and Grimsby Town Football Club have unveiled a specially commissioned bottled beer which will go on sale on Tuesday 28th November 2017. The bottles will be sold at the club shop and at message in a bottle – a specialist beer shop on Cambridge Street, Cleethorpes.
The 3.8% full- bodied ale is a traditional English bitter and is described as having peppery and fruitcake flavours. It is billed as being “the perfect beer for a Winter’s evening”. The festive beer follows on from the brewery’s successful Mariners Promotion Ale which was brewed to commemorate the club’s historic return to the Football League after their victory at Wembley Stadium in May 2016.
Charles Lumley is a director of the brewery and also owns message in bottle, he explains how the idea for the beer came about.
“After the success of Mariners Promotion Ale, I met with representatives from the Mariners Trust and the football club to see if we could do something a bit different this year,” said Lumley. “We thought a special, short batch Christmas beer would work well both in my beer shop and in the club shop. The bottles look terrific and will make perfect Christmas presents for any Town fans who like a beer. And let’s face it – a lot of them do! As a life- long Town fan, I am really excited to be working with the club again and we have lots more ideas as to how we can work together in the future.”
Fellow fan and brewery director, William Douglas, was tasked with coming up with the design for the bottles and again drew inspiration from Operation Promotion.
“The Mariners Trust auctioned an amazing one- off Mariners themed painting by Paine Proffitt and I was lucky enough to make the winning bid,” said Douglas. “It now has pride of place in my home. He’s an American artist but is based in the UK and his retro styles perfectly capture the nostalgia and romance of English football. I contacted Paine and he was happy for us to use his image on the bottle and it seems to be the perfect fit for this particular beer.”
Rae Walker from Grimsby Town can’t wait to get the bottles in the shop.
“We are certain that these will sell really well in the club shop,” said Walker. “We have already had lots of interest in them and it is great to offer our customers something new and exciting for Christmas.”